All the Bruins love him: Dougie Hamilton the ninth pick

The Bruins selected Niagara Ice Dogs defenseman Dougie Hamilton with the ninth overall pick in Friday’s NHL[1] draft. Hamilton was rated the fourth-best North American skater in the draft by the NHL[2] Central Scouting Bureau.

At 6-foot-4 and 187 pounds, Hamilton is considered a strong defenseman with good puck-moving ability. In 67 OHL games this past season, Hamilton had 12 goals and 46 assists for 58 points. He had a plus-35 rating and racked up 77 penalty minutes.

After making the choice, B’s general manager Peter Chiarelli appeared on VS. and described Hamilton as a “big strong kid with good offensive instinct.” Hamilton becomes the first defenseman drafted by the Bruins in the first round under Chiarelli.

The selection closes the book on 2009’s trade between the Bruins and Maple Leafs[3] that sent Phil Kessel[4]to Toronto in exchange for two first-round picks and a second-rounder. The Bruins ended up with Tyler Seguin[5], Jared Knight and Hamilton.

After the selection was made, Knight, who played against Hamilton while the two were in the OHL, tweeted “congrats to [Hamilton]… Great player… One defensemen I hated to play against.”